MARCH 1 "RMSI" MARITIME SECURITY WORKSHOP: MAKING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 SINGAPORE 000721

SIPDIS

PACOM FOR JIACG/CT, JIATF-WEST; ALSO FOR FPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 3/7/2015
TAGS: PREL MARR EWWT PTER SN CH JA MY ID
SUBJECT: MARCH 1 "RMSI" MARITIME SECURITY WORKSHOP: MAKING
PROGRESS WITH THE LITTORAL STATES

REF: STATE 38874

Classified By: EP Counselor Laurent Charbonnet, Reasons 1.4(b)(d)


1. (C) Summary: On March 1, the USG hosted an informal
workshop on the five "RMSI" elements of maritime security for
Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. The meeting
marked the first time the United States has met exclusively
with the Malacca Strait littorals on maritime security. The
re-worked title "regional maritime security cooperation"
seemed quite acceptable to all participants. The USG
inter-agency team gave presentations on: enhancing
coordination and information sharing both at the inter-agency
level and internationally to improve Maritime Domain
Awareness (MDA); the JIATF Intelligence Fusion Center
concept; establishing maritime authorities and responsive
decision-making architecture; and potential legal models for
international information sharing and operational
cooperation. Malaysia expressed interest in further
discussions on maritime security, particularly on technology
to improve MDA; Indonesia expressed interest in further
discussions on the fusion center concept and on
decision-making architecture and models for coordinating the
maritime security missions of a range of domestic agencies.
Malaysian and Indonesian reactions suggest that the next
steps in the "RMSI" process should be bilateral efforts with
Indonesia and Malaysia respectively. Thereafter, a focus on
the need for empowering legal arrangements between the three
littoral states will require a return to a multilateral
format. End Summary.


2. (U) On March 1 in Singapore, the USG hosted an informal
workshop on the elements of maritime security for Indonesia,
Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. A representative from the
International Maritime Organization (IMO) also attended. The
workshop took place on the eve of the ASEAN Regional Forum
Confidence Building Measure (CBM) conference on Maritime
Security co-hosted by Singapore and the United States from
March 2-4.

Cooperative Maritime Security: the USCG Experience
-------------- --------------


3. (U) Vice Admiral Harvey Johnson led off the morning with a
presentation on the U.S. Coast Guard's cooperative approach
to maritime security. The Coast Guard has stepped up
cooperation with other U.S. federal, state and local agencies
post 9/11. Enhanced Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) has been
instrumental in raising effectiveness.


4. (U) Participants highlighted differences between the U.S.
experience and the situation in the Malacca Strait.
Singapore's MinDef Policy Director Col. Gary Ang pointed out
that the users of the Strait of Malacca were mostly
non-littoral states. Since user states needed to play a
part, he suggested, perhaps handling maritime security under
the auspices of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) would be the
most effective way to proceed. EAP Maritime Security
Coordinator Richard deVillafranca responded that, while user
states certainly had an interest in maritime security policy
in the region, at the end of the day it would be the littoral
states that would do the brunt of the actual work. Another
factor to consider would be the length of time it would take
to move policy through the ARF. The Malaysian delegation
noted the need to address the socio-cultural roots of
maritime crime. Malaysian Admiral Abdul Rahim Hussin advised
that a comprehensive solution required removing the
motivation for crime by promoting economic development and
pointed to Malaysia's experience in defeating its communist
insurgency in the 1940's and 1950's as an example.

U.S. Maritime Security Policy: the Interagency Process
-------------- --------------


5. (U) PM/ISO Senior Naval Advisor CAPT. Bruce Nichols'
presentation on the interagency process covered the recently
concluded experience of U.S. agencies in working together to
create and implement a new National Security Policy Directive
(NSPD) to coordinate maritime security policy post-9/11. He
highlighted the importance of top-down leadership to keep
participating agencies on track. Also important was the need
for agencies to "take a step back" to educate themselves on
the organization and functions of their partners, to
understand the scope and limitations of statutory authorities
within the interagency participants and to delegate drafting
to a smaller core group.


6. (U) Singapore's Col. Ang cautioned that it was impractical
to wait for the littoral states to complete their own
interagency reorganizations before moving forward with
regional cooperation. Rather than wait, he suggested that
countries needed to use existing relationships. Malaysia's
Admiral Abdul Hadi (Director of Malaysia's "MECC" or Maritime
Enforcement Coordination Center) drew attention to his
country's own experience with reorganization in establishing
its MECC and in ongoing efforts to establish the Malaysian
Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA),which he termed "a sort
of Coast Guard" to enforce maritime security. Indonesia's
Damos Dumoli Agusman (MFA) advised that his country was also
currently pursuing interagency reorganization; he noted that
while 9/11 had given U.S. agencies a common definition of the
threat and a motive to stay focused, Indonesia's government
agencies had so far run into problems in these areas.

Interagency Communication: the Fusion Center Concept
-------------- --------------


7. (U) Joint Interagency Task Force West (JIATF-West) LTC
Mike Creed discussed the necessary elements for interagency
coordination by reviewing JIATF-West's efforts to combat
narcotics trafficking. Standardization and broad access to
information were essential to promote interoperability among
agencies and countries. This leads to a "Common Operating
Picture" and the fusion concept, where data can be turned
into actionable intelligence and used against specific
targets. Equally important, there must be an equal
partnership among agencies, which is fostered by well-defined
MOU's.


8. (U) A Malaysian representative stressed the difficulty of
getting agencies to share information. CAPT. Roger Welch,
PACOM JIACG/CT Director, responded that one solution to this
problem would be to ensure that all agencies be given credit
for arrests and seizures so each has an incentive to
cooperate rather than compete. Singapore's Col. Ang
questioned whether the fusion center concept could be
replicated in the Malacca Strait without first resolving
larger political issues, due to different levels of
information sharing among countries and the fact that most of
the Strait were national territory. Richard deVillafranca
agreed on the need for an effective information sharing
agreement between the three Malacca Strait littorals; he
noted the 2002 agreement on information sharing between
Indonesia, Malaysia and three other ASEAN members, but also
noted Singapore was not yet a signatory. This agreement
might become the basis for an initial effort at information
sharing among the littorals. On the operational front, he
noted that the coordinated patrols between Indonesia,
Malaysia, and Singapore could be a first step toward better
information sharing, since enhanced information exchange
could improve the efficient use of scarce maritime assets.

The Legal Dimension: International Agreements
--------------


9. (U) The fourth session, presented by L/OES
Attorney-Adviser CAPT. Ashley Roach, focused on the role that
bilateral and regional agreements play in establishing a
successful framework for regional maritime security. For
agreements to be effective, states must offer the fullest law
enforcement cooperation possible in accordance with their
national laws and on the basis of respect for sovereignty,
equality and mutual benefit. Because terrorists and maritime
criminals do not respect national boundaries and often
exploit jurisdictional "gaps and seams," international
cooperation, supported by strong bilateral and regional
agreements, is a crucial means of enhancing capability to
suppress illicit activity at sea.


10. (U) Reactions to the idea of creating new legal
structures for maritime security cooperation varied from
delegation to delegation. Singapore's Col. Ang was generally
supportive but cautioned that too great an emphasis on legal
formalities could potentially impede commerce and
cooperation; Ang argued for a balanced approach of looking at
what existing agreements had to offer and making adjustments
as necessary. The Malaysian delegation was more cautious,
emphasizing the importance of maintaining absolute
sovereignty no matter what form regional cooperation might
take. Roach advised that these were perfectly natural
concerns that the United States had encountered frequently as
it had built cooperative relationships with countries in the
Western Hemisphere; he advised that as mutual comfort levels
increased, countries invariably tended to shed their initial
reluctance to allow neighbors to play a greater role in
combating common maritime threats.

Table Top Exercise: Caribbean Region Model
--------------

11. (U) Brigadier General (Ret) Thomas Flemming from PACOM
described the Caribbean Regional Agreement (CRA) to
demonstrate how countries could collectively build greater
situational awareness to combat transnational threats. While
the focus of the CRA was narcotics, several aspects of it
might be applicable to the Strait of Malacca. For example,
the CRA had a Cooperating Nation Information Exchange System
that provided a common operating picture with real-time
electronic communications. Respecting national sovereignty,
each state could determine how much information it shared.


12. (U) A Malaysian participant emphasized concern for
environmental protections and improved aids to navigation
instead of a disproportionate emphasis on terrorist threats.
Singapore's Col. Ang observed that the three littoral states
already cooperated on air traffic control, with over-lapping
radar coverage and a system where controllers could
communicate in real time. There was also some discussion of
existing bilateral and trilateral mechanisms to enhance
maritime security in the Strait. CAPT. Welch closed by
stressing the need to inventory existing assets, agreements,
and capabilities to identify gaps in coverage and areas where
capacity building could be done with greatest effect.

Afternoon Wrap-up Session
--------------


13. (U) Singapore's Col. Ang again emphasized the importance
of involving user states in maritime security policy and of
having an external body such as the ARF or IMO play a role.
Ang also offered that a holistic approach to maritime
security should also include consequence management -- the
cooperative measures that countries would take after an event
had occurred. He advised that working on consequence
management would involve fewer political obstacles than
cooperating on prevention and might be a way to
institutionalize the regional maritime security dialogue.


14. (U) In response to the IMO representative's intervention
on the serious regional and global economic consequences of a
terrorist incident in the Malacca Strait, the Malaysian MFA's
Wan Napsiah Salleh cautioned that "extreme examples" of
possible terrorist activity or rampant piracy in the Strait
of Malacca amounted to saying that her government was not
doing enough. She advised that Malaysia was aware of the
need to "be vigilant," but it would have to carefully study
the ideas presented during the workshop before deciding
whether they were suitable for Malaysia. The Indonesian
delegation's reaction was more muted. DEPLU's Damos Dumoli
Agusman was appreciative of U.S. efforts and expressed
interest in further discussions.

Comment
--------------


15. (C) It was a considerable achievement to bring together
diplomatic, military and law enforcement representatives from
Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand to discuss
maritime security. It is an indication that the maritime
security debate has shifted over the last six months. While
preserving national sovereignty remains sensitive, the
discussions focused more on organizational and operational
issues. The next steps on our maritime security strategy for
the Strait of Malacca should include following up on the
interest Malaysia and Indonesia expressed in the use of
technology to enhance MDA and Indonesia's desire to learn
more about the inter-agency process that led to the
Presidential Directive on Maritime Security Policy.
Malaysian and Indonesian reactions suggest that the next
steps in the "RMSI" process should be bilateral efforts with
Indonesia and Malaysia respectively. Thereafter, a focus on
the need for empowering legal arrangements between the three
littoral states will require a return to a multilateral
format.


16. (C) Comment, continued: After the March 1 discussions,
Maritime Coordinator deVillafranca briefed Japan Coast Guard
(Iwanami and Sakurai) and Chinese MFA (Counselor Zhao
Jianhua) in broad terms about the objective and outcomes of
the workshop. The Chinese reaction, in particular, suggests
a lessening of suspicion and concern about USG engagement
with the Malacca Strait littorals on maritime security, a
notable development given that 80 percent of China's oil
imports transit the Strait. On Japan, despite goodwill and
common strategic and operation objectives, we continue to
grapple for a way to coordinate our respective maritime
efforts in the Malacca Strait.

17. (U) This message has been cleared by EAP Maritime
Coordinator Richard deVillafranca.
LAVIN